No matter how good your Gibson – or, indeed, any make of guitar – you still need it ready to play. With the best will in the world, most of us (I’d guess) pay scant attention to our guitar’s set up and slickness before simply getting down to we love best: and that’s the playing.

But if you haven’t got a prep-it-all roadie or guitar tech (me neither!), then the new Gibson Multi-Tool is your new best friend. With a selection of hex keys, screwdrivers, a wrench and levers crammed into one tiny package, it’s a must-have of popping into your guitar case or gigbag for any last minute adjustments you need to make. Especially on state-of-the-art Gibsons with zero-fret adjustable nuts.

Craig Anderton at Harmony Central is a fan. In a new review he writes, “Probably like many of you, I have a tool collection that includes hex keys, screwdrivers, socket wrenches, etc. - so when I need to set up a guitar to my liking, I’m covered. However, taking all these on the road is inconvenient, and having proper tools at my fingertips became more of an issue when Gibson introduced the zero-fret adjustable nut. I found that raising the nut up all the way could convert my guitar into a slide guitar in under a minute (and once the nut was raised, the G FORCE automatic tuning provided an appropriate open tuning for slide). But then one night, I lost the 0.05” hex key…

“I also do more frequent pickup adjustments, because of amp sims. There’s a trade-off between pickup height, output, sustain, and attack transients; with physical amps I prefer the pickups closer for more output and attack, but with amp sims, lowering the pickups reduces the initial transient and gives a more consistent average signal.”

“So it was time for Gibson’s Multi-Tool. It's very compact and fits in my guitar case, so I can leave all the other tools back home at my workbench.”

Craig posts a pic of the Multi-Tool next to a Quarter to show just how compact it is, and he’s recommending it becomes a permanent feature in your guitar case.

The Multi-Tool has two groups of tools, which swivel out from each end. One group is:

- 5/16” truss rod socket wrench

- 4 mm slotted screwdriver

- 1/8”, 1/16”, and 0.05” hex keys

- Lever with engraved marks at 3/64” and 5/64” for checking action at the 12th fret

The second group is:

- 1.5 mm, 2 mm, 2.5 mm, and 3 mm hex keys

- #1 and #2 Phillips-head screwdrivers

The screwdrivers are useful for all manner of things, from levering battery compartments and even scraping away gunk (if used gently) and Craig noted that the engraved lever made action-checking quicker than simply: playing, feeling, adjusting, repeat...